Indiana University Athletics
Moran & VanBrandt Named Big Ten Outstanding Sportsmanship Award Winners
7/9/2026 12:00:00 PM | General, Softball, Wrestling
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. ––– Indiana's Jacob Moran (Wrestling) and Aly VanBrandt (Softball) were named IU's Big Ten Outstanding Sportsmanship Award winners for the 2025-26 academic year as announced by the conference office on Thursday (July 9).
Jacob Moran enjoyed a tremendous six-year career for IU Wrestling and made his last season his best in 2025-26. The graduate student compiled a 20-8 record with an 11-3 mark in dual matches as IU's starter at 125 lbs.
He used his great regular season to propel him to a fantastic postseason. Moran won his opening two matches at the Big Ten Championships to reach the semifinals before moving to the wrestlebacks and working his way to a fourth-place finish. His performance earned him his second career NCAA Championships qualification.
At NCAAs, Moran ripped off three wins in a row to open the tournament, including two wins over top-10 seeds to put him in the national semifinals at 125 lbs. Moran lost his semifinals match and moved to the consolation bracket from there. He finished in sixth place on the podium to become an All-American for the first time in his career. He became the highest placing Hoosier and first semifinalist since 2016.
Aly VanBrandt is coming off of a tremendous junior season for Indiana Softball. VanBrandt has been a day-one starter for the Hoosiers at second base she arrived on campus, but she took her game to another level in 2026. She hit .396 at the plate with 78 hits, including 15 doubles, seven triples and 16 home runs. She compiled 62 RBI, 68 runs scored and was 25-for-28 on stolen bases. VanBrandt had a slugging percentage of .787 and an on-base percentage of .492.
Her outstanding play helped the Hoosiers reach a program-record fourth-straight NCAA Tournament appearance. She helped IU to its third 40-plus win season in the last four years and it was also the third time out of the last four seasons that the Hoosiers reached the Big Ten Tournament semifinals.
VanBrandt was named an NFCA All-Region First Team selection and an All-Big Ten Second Team pick. It was the third time in her career that she was an NFCA honoree and the second team that she was named to the all-conference team.
Jacob Moran enjoyed a tremendous six-year career for IU Wrestling and made his last season his best in 2025-26. The graduate student compiled a 20-8 record with an 11-3 mark in dual matches as IU's starter at 125 lbs.
He used his great regular season to propel him to a fantastic postseason. Moran won his opening two matches at the Big Ten Championships to reach the semifinals before moving to the wrestlebacks and working his way to a fourth-place finish. His performance earned him his second career NCAA Championships qualification.
At NCAAs, Moran ripped off three wins in a row to open the tournament, including two wins over top-10 seeds to put him in the national semifinals at 125 lbs. Moran lost his semifinals match and moved to the consolation bracket from there. He finished in sixth place on the podium to become an All-American for the first time in his career. He became the highest placing Hoosier and first semifinalist since 2016.
Aly VanBrandt is coming off of a tremendous junior season for Indiana Softball. VanBrandt has been a day-one starter for the Hoosiers at second base she arrived on campus, but she took her game to another level in 2026. She hit .396 at the plate with 78 hits, including 15 doubles, seven triples and 16 home runs. She compiled 62 RBI, 68 runs scored and was 25-for-28 on stolen bases. VanBrandt had a slugging percentage of .787 and an on-base percentage of .492.
Her outstanding play helped the Hoosiers reach a program-record fourth-straight NCAA Tournament appearance. She helped IU to its third 40-plus win season in the last four years and it was also the third time out of the last four seasons that the Hoosiers reached the Big Ten Tournament semifinals.
VanBrandt was named an NFCA All-Region First Team selection and an All-Big Ten Second Team pick. It was the third time in her career that she was an NFCA honoree and the second team that she was named to the all-conference team.
Players Mentioned
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